This message is from the end of April, when we couldn’t get haircuts among other things 😉 and it is still true nearly 6 months later. Some of the primary areas of focus for us have been (and will continue to be for a foreseeable future) grouped in five major categories: 1. People 2. Training 3. Communication 4. Partnerships 5. …
Business continuity extends beyond technology
While business continuity and disaster recovery are heavily dependent on technology, tools and processes they both need to extend beyond technology and should be approached as organizational priorities, endeavors and initiatives.
Build a great team
Build a great team. Surround yourself with the best people you can find, attract and retain. If you are good (ideally great) at what you do, you want people who are amazing at what they do, preferably, in areas that are not your strengths. Furthermore, don’t simply post a job description on your website and wait for applicants. Instead, leverage …
Switching industries mid-career
Switching industries mid-career is a topic I come across frequently and those inquiring almost always doubt their abilities to make the switch successfully. While every industry and profession has its nuances, terminology and software used, the fundamental experience in areas such as leadership, management, technology, finances, marketing and the like don’t change that much. After all, P&L is P&L in …
This is a team: in or out?
Business is a team sport. All top performing organizations have arrived there through a lot of work by a lot of people, never a single individual alone. Furthermore, on many teams, certain star players with particular functional (technical) skills have been know to take advantage of the environment they are in. This behavior should not be tolerated and allowed as …
To survive your business must be profitable
Profit dictates your organizational sustainability, longevity and its very existence. Whether you are in for-profit or non-profit sectors, you have to be profitable in order to pay your people, rent, utilities, technology, vendors…and the list goes on. While the growth doesn’t need to be substantial in every instance, even a single digit percentage increase in revenues (ideally in profits as …
Invest in people first
People must come first in all you do and here’s why. If you invest time, attention, focus and financial resources into attracting, retaining and growing the best people you can afford you will be positioned adequately to improve and grow your business. It all starts with people first, then processes, policies, followed by technology and everything else in THAT order. …
Personality, communication, negotiation and leadership
85% of your financial success depends on your personality, the way you communicate, negotiate and lead. Only 15% depends on your technical skills. Knowing this it is essential to focus on improving those essential skills while building your networks and friendships. While in some career technical skills will be of greater value and impact, as you grow and advance up …
Beware of self-proclaimed experts
Beware of self-proclaimed experts as they are rarely what they claim to be. Expertise can at times be subjective and skin deep which is why you should accept expertise cautiously (especially the one where it is self-proclaimed). I have experienced numerous examples where so called experts were miles away from what they have claimed to be and as such our …
Experience is a lot more than the number of years alone
Experience is what we are all after when looking for a new hire (obviously in addition to personality, skill set and education to name a few). However, this elusive experience is not equivalent to the number of years candidates have, but it is much more related to how were those years spent. When looking to hire, ask yourself, better yet, …